Socrates in the City: Conversations on "Life, God, and Other Small Topics"

by Eric Metaxas

Following the extraordinary success of the New York Times bestseller Bonhoeffer , Eric Metaxas's latest book offers inspirational and intellectually rigorous thought about the great questions surrounding us all today. The Greek philosopher Socrates famously said that "the unexamined life is not worth living." Taking this as a starting point, Eric Metaxas founded a speaking series that encouraged busy and successful professionals to attend forums and think actively about the bigger questions in life. Thus Socrates in the Conversations on "Life, God, and Other Small Topics" was born. This book is for the seeker in all of us, the collector of wisdom, and the person who asks "What if?" Within this collection of original essays that were first given to standing-room-only crowds in New York City are serious thinkers taking on Life, God, Evil, Redemption, and other small topics. Luminaries such as Dr. Francis Collins, Sir John Polkinghorne, Charles Colson, N.T. Wright, Os Guinness, Peter Kreeft, and Jean Bethke Elshatin have written about extraordinary topics vital to both secular and Christian thinking, such as "Making Sense Out of Suffering," "How Good Confronts Evil," and "Belief in God in an Age of Science." No question is too big-in fact, the bigger, the harder, the more complex, the better. These essays are both thought-provoking and entertaining, because nowhere is it written that finding answers to life's biggest questions shouldn't be exciting and even, perhaps, fun.

Genres: Philosophy, Nonfiction, Christian, Religion, Science, Audiobook, Christianity

400 pages, Hardcover

First published October 1, 2011

About the author

In a decidedly eclectic career, Eric Metaxas has written for VeggieTales, Chuck Colson, Rabbit Ears Productions and the New York Times, four things not ordinarily in the same sentence. He is a best-selling author whose biographies, children’s books, and works of popular apologetics have been translated into more than 25 languages.

Reviews

[Julie Davis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rediscovered this when looking through my old Audible purchases. Am enjoying it all over again.
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I really enjoyed listening to the recordings of all these talks by such a variety of speakers. The Q&As for the most part were also really interesting. The one thing I didn't always love was Eric Metaxas' sense of humor. However, that's a small point. Considering how much I loved Rabbit Ears Radio and respect his books, his sense of humor is the last thing we're going to let get in the way, right?

[Nathan Albright · Rating 5 out of 5]

It is easy to see what Metaxas is trying to do with this work, and it is something that can (and probably should) be done by others.  Not all readers, even those who are generally fond of the author's work in general [1], are likely to appreciate this book, especially the way it is formatted.  Some people are likely to think that the editor is being a bit flippant in roasting his guests (including himself!) before they speak.  But there is a lot of genuine Socratic spirit in these pages and in these discussions, not only in the fact that the talks cover largely philosophical subjects of great interest to those whose range of interests spans from natural philosophy to Christian apologetics, but also because the talks themselves have a strong question and answer component to them and because the atmosphere as a whole resembles something that would have been familiar to Socrates and his associates, a college of wise people who were good-natured and liked asking and answering questions and talking at some length meeting together in a friendly if somewhat formal atmosphere.  This book is evidence that the spirit of Socrates' discussions can be brought successfully into the contemporary world, and that is worth appreciating.

This book is a somewhat lengthy one at almost 400 pages, and it contains a variety of talks with a variety of speakers organized with Metaxas roasting them in an introduction, a talk in which they present an idea which usually relates to their works as writers and thinkers, and then a question and answer session with the audience.  Speakers and topics include Sir John Polkinghorne talking about believing in God in an age of science, Peter Kreeft talking about making sense out of suffering, Paul Vitz talking about the importance of fatherhood, Richard John Neuhaus talking about the relationship of atheism and citizenship, Jean Bethke Elshtain talking about C.S. Lewis and the question of humanity, Charles Colson talking about the good life, N.T. Wright talking about why Christianity makes sense, Alister McGrath talking about the decline of contemporary atheism, Os Guinness giving a case for civility in the contemporary world, Francis Collins talking about the human genome as the language of God, and the editor himself talking about lessons from the life and death of Dietrich Bonhoeffer.  Make no mistake, while the tone of Metaxas' introductions is consistently light and humorous, these are not small or insignificant topics beings discussed.

This is not to say that I agree with everything that is said by these people.  By and large I would listen patiently to any of them, and some of them I thought were very well-spoken, but a few of them (this is true of the theistic evolution of Francis Collins in particular) come off a bit worse than others.  No doubt all of them got a respectful hearing and the atmosphere as a whole was witty and intelligent and precisely the sort of atmosphere that one would expect would be viewed highly by those who want to see Christians in the public sphere.  All of the people engaged in these talks would be people who mainstream believers would be content to see popularizing and defending their faith at least in the general sense, and the editor did a good job at choosing a wide variety of speakers with different areas of focus and interest and different backgrounds, making this an ecumenical experience of a kind that few people get to experience.  It is only a shame, I suppose, that there are so few places where one can get a group of thoughtful and philosophical people on a regular basis for talks of this kind.

[1] See, for example:

https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2017...

https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2015...

https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2015...

https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2014...

[Jude Grindvoll · Rating 2 out of 5]

I would love to give this book a higher rating as some of the speeches contained within it are very absorbing and interesting, but I can't. The biggest problem I have with this book is that it claims to be a collection of philosophical discussions on some very important issues (life, God, the universe etc) when in actual fact it was a series of 11 lectures from people all with the same point of view. Not to be pedantic about the matter, but surely any book discussing such important and, ultimately, life changing issues should at least attempt to counter-balance the arguments with equally intelligent arguments from the opposite perspective?

This book, fundamentally (if you pardon the pun) is nothing more than Christian propaganda window dressed as philosophical debate. There is no debate in this book (since every speaker has essentially the same viewpoint). The Q and A sections following each speech hardly allowed room to challenge these perspectives to any great degree and were very disappointing.

Now I am not anti-Christian in the slightest and believe that theological discussion is a massively important element if we are to follow the Socratic dictum of living 'an examined life'. Those who avoid thinking about atheism, theism or creation in general, cannot feel they are exploring their own existence to any great extent. But when you publish a book claiming to be one thing and actually deliver another thing entirely, surely this can be nothing more than propaganda pure and simple?

[Carol Apple · Rating 5 out of 5]

I listened to the audiobook and it was great to hear the voices of all the speakers as well as Metaxas’ funny introductions in which he mostly roasts the speaker of the night’s program and repeats the premise and motto of the series: Socrates’ maxim that “The unexamined life is not worth living.” Metaxas and Os Guinness, speaker at the series and author of many books, hatched the idea for the series based on the maxim and their concern that busy professional New Yorkers did not tend to take the time to contemplate the important questions of life.

Listening to the audiobook you get some idea of the event atmosphere – the laughter, the applause, the tinkling of wine glasses. It sounds like they are having fun. And that is part of the charm of the whole idea – that discussing questions of existence does not have to be grim and especially does not have to be boring. The topics discussed at these events are not only some of the most important but also some of the most lively and fun to discuss. Apparently many people agree judging from the apparent popularity of the series. It’s been active monthly since late 2000 right after the famous George Bush / Al Gore contested election, so the series was active though the 911 period, when I imagine New Yorkers became even more acutely interested in exploring the deep questions.

These lectures are all so rich and varied that it would be difficult to summarize even highlights in a short review. The title alone was enough to get me to spend 28 bucks for the book (yes in addition to listening to the audiobook I actually bought the book). I’m very glad I did because I will want to read through all of these essays/lectures again. Also, the book includes a bibliography of all the literature of these prolific speakers.

More about this book at L http://www.carolsnotes.net/2012/04/so...

[Trice · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quotes from Os Guinness' talk "The Case for Civility - and Why Our Future Depends on It"

"A civil public square is where people of all faiths - and for our secularist friends we have to add 'no faith,' although in fact they have faith, too - are free to enter engaged public life on the basis of their faith." (287-288)

"Christians have erred in the culture wars but not because it is wrong to contest issues such as human life and the importance of the family. What has been wrong is the sub-Christian manner in which Christians have fought - for example, fear-mongering when Jesus told his followers to 'have no fear' or demonizing and stereotyping their enemies when Jesus commanded his followers to love their enemies." (289-290) AMEN, brother!!!

And multiple magnitudes of kudos for engaging John Rawls' notion of a just public square, and engaging it well and fairly (haha)!


Gotta grab some of those great words from N.T. Wright's talk too, but as this is a borrowed book and I can't mark it, it's hard to re-find the especially brilliant portions. Guess I may just have to reread it for the sake of quotations.

[Samantha · Rating 5 out of 5]

A series of talks on 'life, God, and other small topics,' this book is the thinking person's alternative to pop psychology and prosperity gospel (that will seem much more clever and applicable if you listen to the book).

Based upon other reviews, I can see that listening to the audio version of this book is much more enjoyable than reading the paperback. That makes sense, since the audiobook is a recording of the Socrates in the City events with different lecturers taking on a variety of topics before opening up the session to Q&A.

Listening to this made me think and added several new books to my TBR. Definitely worth a listen.

[Nancy Head · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it! A must read for anyone interested in Christian discourse.

[Don · Rating 5 out of 5]

unexamined life not worth living, know thy self and limits, search for truth in and out of science fit together cannot be accident evolve a more clever world make own self thru procreation wisdom as pursuit of good over evil literature as individual story, Making sense of suffering Kreeft Frankel to live to suffer to live for meaning Buddha-let go ego selfish desire all things work together for good faith as invitation to trust come and see hope in future love in closeness with Jesus he wept only sin to not forgive via pride life as tree radiantly happy as Missionaries of Charity interpret data playing with opinions or objective truth most imp ? what is truth, Fatherhood crisis is result of culture crisis of what it is to be a father sins of father go on for 3-4 generations and data is 50 years more likely to criminal or gang success high with father family structure most significant, loose faith in God after loose faith in father, examples, integrity of words and action, self-sacrifice and helping best for fathers, atheist or good citizen likely to be self-serving vs sacrifice believer or knower propaganda or reasonable discourse best citizen of God not founded as country of atheists not now either, unloving society kills imperfect vs teaching love and virtues, Care more for others, never a cause for despair, purpose to redeem life in culture, biblical reason vs no concept of grace in islam, dignity sovereignty rule of law do for others, 100’s inquisition and crusades over control of land, change culture one at a time, theocracy cannot be democracy, be loving Christians compare to Christ, tolerance-if give up despair, free society growth China India SAfrica Russia vs nothing original islam, be Christian see God and reflect out to others, Christian prayer intimate awesome, church as family, as Christ pray to Father, language of God one of 15 constants minor change then different creation, William Wilburforce, Hildenbrand taught Harlem, Hitler fooled most, live as serious Christian.

[John Martindale · Rating 4 out of 5]

From seeing some of the reviews, I am glad I listen to the audiobook, for instead printed speeches, the audiobook included the actual presentations. Most of the talks were pretty good, a couple were exceptional, but Peter Kreeft speech on "making sense of suffering" was just horrible, I imagine one of the only people who could have been a worse choice for this topic would be John Piper. But yeah, sadly Kreeft's theology does absolutely nothing but exacerbate the problem of evil and after blowing the problem to cosmic proportions, Keeft pulls the mystery card, saying God can do whatever he wants and we should just shut up and not question. Instead of actually addressing the problem, it's like he tries to cover a canon ball wound with a band-aid. Fortunately there are some like C.S Lewis, Gregory Boyd and Alvin Plantinga who have done a reasonable job addressing this problem. Keeft's understanding of sovereignty completely rules of libertarian freewill, Keeft even thinks God wrote all history beforehand, so all evil is part of God's plan. So hearing him trying to justify the God who ordains all genocide, murder, rape, child molesting, etc... sounds to me like a communist trying to justify and explain-away how their believed leaders murdered 100,000,000 of their own people. All their words are trite, empty, absurd and intolerable. Keeft might as well have been trying to argue the devil is good, holy, loving, just and righteous, after all I am sure for Keeft the devil is merely God's puppet that does his dirty work. But no worries, God's wonderful End justifies his sadistic, cruel and diabolically evil means, all the evil God causes through secondary means, he intends for good. So yes, when your child is kidnapped, tortured and dismembered by a psychopath, do rest assured God predestined this event before He created the world and meant it for good, oh and if you dare question God doing this, SHUT UP, Zip it! God can do what he wants!!!

[Finn01 · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book lacks any critical thought whatsoever. I implore you not to buy this for anything other than firewood.

The titles of the talks are captivating and is why I choose to buy the book. The only positive from the book is that Eric Metaxas provides good examples of how to introduce a speaker – this is the only positive of the book.

The talks themselves are not given by ‘thought leaders!’ The speakers have the collective intellectual rigor of a single brick.

The talks were clearly one big circle jerk. Even the Q+A is total garbage.

A prime example is:
p.175 (Talk: “The Good Life: Seeking Purpose, Meaning, and Truth in Your Life” by Charles W. Colson 24th May 2006)
“You can only make sense out of life when you see life through the lens of a biblical understanding of reality […] If we came out of the primordial soup, as people believe today and as your kids are being taught in evolution courses in public schools, then there is no basis for human dignity. If we’re created by a loving God, then we’re invested with dignity.”

If that isn’t enough wait until you read page 178!

He goes on to argue the following:
“[Christianity is the only worldview and understanding that works.] Compare it to Confucianism, to Hinduism, to Buddhism, to Islam; compare it to any other philosophy. The others don’t work.
Human history is the ash heap of all the promised utopian answers to human problems, every one of which had lead to tyranny. Look at the twentieth century. Every single one of the tyrants of the twentieth century promised to be a redeemer, a false promise. The blood ran through the killing fields of Cambodia and the gulags and the Holocaust as a consequence of the false redemption promises of tyrants.”

It is simply morally, historically, scientifically appalling that this was ever published.

I shall make it my life’s purpose to ensure all existing copies are recalled and recycled into something useful.

[Don · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent book! I highly recommend the audio version as it will absorb you into the atmosphere of the New York City event, as well as having the plus of hearing each speaker present his essay in his or her own voice.

I found the book very thought-provoking, and so I took some of the chapters slowly. Some I chose to return back and re-read, so I could mentally chew on the points that were being made. I did not agree with everything that each speaker presented -- for example, Peter Kreeft’s belief that Socrates may be in heaven, or Francis Collins’ theistic evolutionary views. However, that’s the point of the essays and Socrates in the City : to take the time to think about these topics and examine them for yourself.

I did see a review or two with comments that the debates in the work were slanted to include more Christian rather than secular thinkers. First, these are not supposed to be debates! There is a difference between a debate format and an essay presented to a gathering with Q&A following it. Second, while most (if not all) speakers were Christian, I thought they were very thorough and they covered the secular perspective fairly and sufficiently. Actually, they presented the secular viewpoints far better than I usually see of secular thinkers who attempt to present the Christian perspective.

Definitely recommended for anyone who wants to expand their thinking on a few major topics of our time. You’ll come back to read this one again.

[Paul Bruggink · Rating 5 out of 5]

How many places can you find readable and stimulating essays by eleven significant writers on their favorite subjects, generally a summary of a recent book (that is, if you include Eric Metaxas's own essay on his book on Bonhoeffer)? :-)

Each essay includes a transcription of Eric Metaxas' lighthearted introduction, the talk at the Socrates in the City forum, and a transcription of the Q&A session after each talk, all of which took place at Socrates in the City forums between 2003 and 2010. My only regret was that the actual Q&As weren't longer. Among the delights in the book were the speakers' reactions to Eric Metaxas' unorthodox introductions.

It would be unreasonable to expect that questions like belief in God in an age of science, making sense out of suffering, seeking purpose, meaning and truth in your life, why Christianity makes sense, the twilight of atheism, the case for civility, the language of God, etc. can be solved in 25 to 40 pages each, but John Polkinghorne, Peter Kreeft, Charles Colson, N. T. Wright, Alister McGrath, Os Guiness, Francis Collins, etc. take good shots at them, and the Q&A sessions are mostly helpful.

I highly recommend this very readable and enjoyable book to anyone interested in the topics covered.

[Shannon · Rating 1 out of 5]

This isn't a book for philosophers. This is has as much to discuss with philosophy as the Cafe barista down the street. This is a book of theology, Christian theology. You cannot simply sprinkle some references to Socrates and hope to pass a philosophy. And you can't just ask questions and call it philosophy. Poets ask questions. It is how we ask questions and where we are willing to go that makes it philosophy.

This is a book if you are firmly Christian and want to stay within that frame. For that I'd give it 4 stars. Since it was advertised as a philosophy book and a series of philosophy lectures, I give it a 1 star as it is not anything of the sort. You must do more than use fallacies in your arguments (6 billion people can't be wrong is a fallacy) and reference Pascale Wager.

[Marcia · Rating 4 out of 5]

A collection of talks given by prominent world thinkers on the Big Questions about “life, God, and other small topics” over 10 years at the Socrates in the City (NYC!) quoting Socrates, "the unexamined life is not worth living”. These were hosted by Eric Metaxas, who is the final conversation in the book, discussing the Life of Dietrich Bonhoeffer. All of the lectures were based on recent books by the speakers from science, philosophy, religion, etc. Each lecture was followed with the scripts of the Q & A of their talks.
Some of the chapters were pretty heavy reading, but always provided food for thought and forced me to really think about what I believe, and why it should matter.

[Jeremy · Rating 4 out of 5]

The "Socrates in the City" initiative is a commendable idea, and the lineup of speakers that Metaxas gathered for these events is phenomenal. The speeches selected for this volume cover a wide range of critical topics for our time, and each one is poignant and thought provoking. While I hold markedly different views than Metaxas on several issues, I applaud the nature and scope of this project.

PS. I recommend the audiobook so you can hear the unedited speeches delivered in real time, Eric's incessant barrage of jokes (many of which ARE funny!), his memorable speaker introductions, audience response, live Q/A, etc. Well worth the extra time it takes to listen instead of read.

[Mark Dellenbaugh · Rating 5 out of 5]

So many wonderful, thought-provoking talks. The audiobook version has original recordings so the half-dozen or so various British accents all shine through, ensmartening the production. Eric Metaxas' introductions might begin to seem self-indulgent or smarmy when encountered one right after another, but since I suffer the same affliction and sense of humor they worked well for me!

Sir John Polkinghorne, Jean Bethke Elshtain, Chuck Colson, N.T. Wright, Alister McGrath, and Francis Collins were especially impressive.

[Paul · Rating 3 out of 5]

Socrates, gadfly that he is, rolls over in his grave, most unapologetically. This conversational book of collected talks with questions and answers following each section is intended for college/university students majoring in the school of business and marketing without academic interest in the examined life. Unfortunately, Christian clichés proliferate.

[Scott Golden · Rating 4 out of 5]

[I received this book for free through Goodreads First Reads.]
Reasoned, articulate and engaging. These essays will make you think -- as opposed to the charged rhetoric found on social media, which seems so often to generate nothing above the level of reactionary denouncements. Recommended.

[Ron Weddle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent compilations of talks with Q & A on the big questions of life. Highly recommend.

[Jerusha Santiago · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed listening to this book & for the sake of the audio recordings of each session, would highly recommend the Audible version. I particularly enjoyed the talk given by Chuck Colson.

[Nate · Rating 3 out of 5]

Little too conversational (much of it verbatim transcription of their speaking events), however the content is good, similar to veritas forum's book. I especially enjoyed Dr. McGrath's talk.

[Jonathan · Rating 3 out of 5]

6/10

This is not so much a book, strictly speaking, as it is a compilation of lectures. The core concepts revolved around Socrates famous maxim, “The unexamined life is not worth living” To that end, the speeches are by prominent figures in western Christianity, and discuss topics ranging from the intersection of faith and society, science and faith, morality and faith and many such similar topics. The lectures are of a very high quality, and I found them to be engaging, if a little one dimensional in terms of perspective (given that all the speakers would agree with each other on the majority of what they said).

Given its broad scope, I'll just share a few thoughts I had.
Science and faith do themselves a disservice by putting themselves at odds. Science needs the support of the faith community, as it is a large and influential swath of society, and faith, when attempting to argue from the perspective of science typically looks foolish, especially as the two are only rarely actually at odds.

Europe rejected the church because of the shadow the totalitarian church, America is facing a similar rejection due to the rise of the religious right.

"No evil can come to your soul except that it be at your own hand." Frankl

"Heaven is not the end of the world." NT Wright
"We must rise to the dignity of despair"
"The right to believe anything does not mean that everything that one believes is right."

“I know there’s an economic downturn, but I don’t think the chiropractors deserve anything for free, so if you’d like to move your chairs rather than crane your necks, now is the time to do so.” Doctor Collins

On another note, I was almost shocked at how glib and casual Metaxis is, he’s so well researched and methodical in Bonhoeffer that I assumed those were deeper characteristics of his. “If this is your first time, would you raise your hand, and would those of you who are here for the last time please raise your hands as well.” Metaxis must have really enjoyed this joke, as he repeated it at least 6 times across the talks. He also clearly enjoyed introducing the speakers, especially himself.
Metaxis’s lecture on Bonhoeffer was fascinating mostly as I was attempting to reconcile this sarcastic, humorous man, with the dignified intellectual who wrote “Bonhoeffer”. Admittedly I read the book several years ago, but I see very few similarities between the two.

[Rachel · Rating 3 out of 5]

Didn’t finish. Read some of the speeches

[Paula · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Socrates in the City" is a compendium of talks given in the forum of the same name that takes in place in New York City. This periodic event's premise is based on Socrates' words, "The unexamined life is not worth living." I'm as pleased as I can be that I read this as an audio book because it meant actually hearing the speakers and the questions in their own voices. I would have missed the nuances of each speaker's voice and those of the audience members in the Q & A sessions.

Each guest speaker does, indeed, talk about the topics listed in the subtitle. These topics are what I call gritty. You may not agree or even understand the stance each speaker takes on his subject, but you'll have to admit that they are people who challenge your thinking. They know the subjects and are astute to the fact that we might not be. I found refreshing their delivery of facts about their given topic, observations which form and affect culture, and their expressions of their individual opinions on the topic. They speak in civil discourse, something that's lacking in our age of "power through social media." The audience members asking questions following each speech prove that they are no slouches either.

Socrates in the City is a platform I respect because of the content and the method in which the content is delivered. Metaxas' introductions often make me cringe with his attempts at humor, but his keen wit in these efforts outweigh the groaners, so I forgive him. In fact, a few of the speakers found his introductions of them clever.

Metaxas ends this audio book with a talk on his most recently (at that time) published book Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy. Having read "Bonhoeffer," it was a pleasure to hear the author explain a little about his writing and research process and some high points in the biography to look out for. Truly, "Bonhoeffer," though a monster of a book, has now been listed as one of two of my favorite biographies to date. The book Socrates in the City: Conversations on "Life, God, and Other Small Topics" is fairly high up there on the current list of favorite non-fiction too.

Happy reading (and listening).

[Petrichor · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wish I could rate this book lecture by lecture, rather than as a whole. While I found some of the lectures to be fantastic (most notably the lecture by Jean Bethke Elshtain), some of the other lectures are a little lackluster at best. This may be due to the fact that spoken lectures transcribed into essay form tend to be a little distorted, but a few of them felt so rambling and unfocused that if it weren't for the essay title, I couldn't have possibly told you what the topic was. A few sloppy mistakes from the lectures also bugged me. For instance, things like, "Four points I would like to make: Firstly, secondly, and lastly..." happened here and there throughout the book. These things happen, I suppose, especially in spoken lectures, but reading them drove me crazy, and left me wondering what the missing point actually was.
Aside from all that, there really were some excellent lectures in this book, and if you can wade through a bit of muddled territory here and there, then you will probably find it worth reading.

[Lorie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don't quite know what to say, I feel like a traitor because I love listening to Metaxas on the radio, he is insightful, intelligent, listenable - the man can render words so beautifully, I mean, look at his Bonhoeffer! (Just starting that one...) But this book evaded me, as hard as I tried. (Out of sheer loyalty!) I think the topics addressed are extremely important, but the fact that the wording is essentially a transcript of what was presented through the microphone somehow diminished the effectiveness of what is being conveyed. Sort of a "you had to be there" effect. Maybe if I had listened to the MP3 version I would have "gotten it"? I'm sure I would have loved the presentations, they sounds like fun events in a lovely venue, with more cerebral synapses in one room than remained in the whole world outside that room! Perhaps that is my problem, I'm not smart enough for this book? (Yikes.)

[Richard Ross · Rating 4 out of 5]

A collection of lectures delivered in New York from events held by the Socrates in the City organization. Designed to promote discussion and an examination of the big questions in life. This book does just that. Topics ranging from Atheism, Suffering, God and Science, Morality, Evolution, Christianity etc... are what are most common. Unique in its nature, this book is a remarkable resource of information delivered lecture style by some of our generations deepest thinkers. The famous Socrates quote "The unexamined life is not worth living" is the motivating basis for these lectures. Always interesting.

[Sharon Cate · Rating 2 out of 5]

I listened to this book as an audible book. I am torn in giving this book a rating. The majority of the guest contributors were wonderful and deserve a five star review. However, the author's introduction of each contributor was condescending, coming across as vain attempts at humor and a horrible waste of time. I found myself cringing at the beginning of each new chapter. My suggestion is to pass on this book and read the works of the guest speakers. I will definitely be reading the book by Os Guinness, The Case for Civility and Why Our Future Depends on It.

[Larkin · Rating 3 out of 5]

My favorite talk was by Charles Colson; other memborable talks were by Os Guinness and Dr. Francis Collins. Beforehand, I had read one reviewer who was cringing at Eric Metaxas' jokes/commentary, and had thought, "How bad can it be? Surely she's exaggerating."

Trust me -- she was not exaggerating. I am worried that any future nightmares I have will include his cringe-worthy attempts at humor. This was an issue because I listened to this book and couldn't just blithely skip over them while reading.

[Nathan Schwartz · Rating 2 out of 5]

Some of the speeches were pretty good, and some terrible, but they all suffer from being translated to written form. Even a good dinner speech is going to sound rough written down. I have heard Metaxis speak very charmingly, but here his introductions read like your boorish drunken uncle. It is also clear that the speakers are presenting to a sympathetic crowd, and never felt the need to present a strong case for their positions.